The Mysery of Religious Belief

[creekster]

A lot of interesting thoughts here. It is a hard question to answer, particularly if one believes, as I do. TO answer it fairly, for me at least, I have to step outside of my belief and try to look at it objectively.

SU's comments all assume a certain objectivity to our intellects. IOW, some people believe because it suits them, others because they may not be smart enough to worry about it, and so forth. I think the issue may go deeper than that. I think the urge to believe may be a manifestation of the physioogical basis for our brain's self-consciousness. We are wired to believe in something. Spiritual experiences may only be internalized reactions to mental and even physical inputs (hence feeling spiritual feelings at incongruent times). As with any characteristic that is, at root, based in physiology, its strength and appearance varies dramatically from person to person.

Such a characteristic might help us in tribal bonding, help us to endure our self-consciousness as we encounter natural disasters, warfare and other calamities, and help us place our festering self-consciousness in a universe we fail to truly comprehend. It helps us avoid going being mad, IOW. IF so, then we have a long, a VERY long, hard-wired genetic-based inclination to believe in something. What thing? That matters much less than believing in something. So someone who feels the spirit as a Mormon can be surprised when visiting some other service they feel the same spirit. Or someone that concludes there is no God still manages to feel a spiritual connection to works of art.

A problem with my thoughts and with this very discussion is that we are incapable of being truly unbiased and dispassionate observers of our own condition. IT simply cannot happen. Everything we consider in this area is necessarily filtered through our own experience and tendency and pushed through the decision matrix we each used to reach whatever position we have on this topic.

For me, I have found contentment, happiness if you will, in accepting the LDS faith. I believe I am correct in so doing and have no qualms about trying to share my beliefs with others. I also think it is possible that the very urge I have been talking about is placed in each of us to give us the drive to seek truth, or to find the gospel. Au fond de couer, I am happy with this choice.

SO why do we believe? Becasue it works.

[SeattleUte]

Originally Posted by creekster

A lot of interesting thoughts here. It is a hard question to answer, particularly if one believes, as I do. TO answer it fairly, for me at least, I have to step outside of my belief and try to look at it objectively.

SU's comments all assume a certain objectivity to our intellects. IOW, some people believe because it suits them, others because they may not be smart enough to worry about it, and so forth. I think the issue may go deeper than that. I think the urge to believe may be a manifestation of the physioogical basis for our brain's self-consciousness. We are wired to believe in something. Spiritual experiences may only be internalized reactions to mental and even physical inputs (hence feeling spiritual feelings at incongruent times). As with any characteristic that is, at root, based in physiology, its strength and appearance varies dramatically from person to person.

Such a characteristic might help us in tribal bonding, help us to endure our self-consciousness as we encounter natural disasters, warfare and other calamities, and help us place our festering self-consciousness in a universe we fail to truly comprehend. It helps us avoid going being mad, IOW. IF so, then we have a long, a VERY long, hard-wired genetic-based inclination to believe in something. What thing? That matters much less than believing in something. So someone who feels the spirit as a Mormon can be surprised when visiting some other service they feel the same spirit. Or someone that concludes there is no God still manages to feel a spiritual connection to works of art.

A problem with my thoughts and with this very discussion is that we are incapable of being truly unbiased and dispassionate observers of our own condition. IT simply cannot happen. Everything we consider in this area is necessarily filtered through our own experience and tendency and pushed through the decision matrix we each used to reach whatever position we have on this topic.

For me, I have found contentment, happiness if you will, in accepting the LDS faith. I believe I am correct in so doing and have no qualms about trying to share my beliefs with others. I also think it is possible that the very urge I have been talking about is placed in each of us to give us the drive to seek truth, or to find the gospel. Au fond de couer, I am happy with this choice.

SO why do we believe? Becasue it works.

Wow. Creekster is the pool shark here. Fascinating post requiring more than one read for sure.